Global File System

What Does Global File System Mean?

A global file system (GFS), in computer science, is cluster of files that are shared between a number of computers and end systems from which data or services are accessed, stored and fetched. The computer systems may be physically distant or may be a part of same network.

Advertisements

Techopedia Explains Global File System

GFS is especially useful when the physical location of two or more computers are located in distant locations and they cannot directly share a file or group of files. A global file system saves the changes made by one system and displays the changes on all the systems sharing it. It is the same as a distributed file system, except that the nodes have direct access to the data. A GFS reads and writes to the remote device, similarly to a local file system, and also permits the computers to organize their I/O to preserve file system uniformity.

Advertisements

Related Terms

Latest Cloud Computing Terms

Related Reading

Margaret Rouse

Margaret Rouse is an award-winning technical writer and teacher known for her ability to explain complex technical subjects to a non-technical, business audience. Over the past twenty years her explanations have appeared on TechTarget websites and she's been cited as an authority in articles by the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine and Discovery Magazine.Margaret's idea of a fun day is helping IT and business professionals learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages. If you have a suggestion for a new definition or how to improve a technical explanation, please email Margaret or contact her…